Events

• 982 – King Otto II and his Frankish army were defeated by the Muslim army of al-Qasim at Cape Colonna, Southern Italy.
• 1420 – Battle of Vítkov Hill, decisive victory of Czech Hussite forces commanded by Jan Žižka against Crusade army led by Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor.
• 1430 – Joan of Arc, taken by the Burgundians in May, is handed over to Pierre Cauchon, the bishop of Beauvais.
• 1596 – Anglo-Spanish War: English and Dutch troops sack the Spanish city of Cádiz before leaving the next day.
• 1769 – An expedition led by Gaspar de Portolá leaves its base in California and sets out to find the Port of Monterey (now Monterey, California).
• 1789 – Storming of the Bastille in Paris.
  • This event escalates the widespread discontent into the French Revolution.
  • Bastille Day is still celebrated annually in France.
• 1790 – Inaugural Fête de la Fédération is held to celebrate the unity of the French people and the national reconciliation.
• 1791 – Beginning of Priestley Riots (to 17 July) in Birmingham targeting Joseph Priestley as a supporter of the French Revolution.
• 1798 – The Sedition Act of 1798 becomes law in the United States making it a federal crime to write, publish, or utter false or malicious statements about the United States government.
• 1808 – The Finnish War: the Battle of Lapua was fought.
• 1900 – Armies of the Eight-Nation Alliance capture Tientsin during the Boxer Rebellion.
• 1915 – Beginning of the McMahon–Hussein Correspondence between Hussein bin Ali, Sharif of Mecca and the British official Henry McMahon concerning the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire.
• 1916 – World War I: Battle of Delville Wood begins as an action within the Battle of the Somme, lasting until 03 September 1916.
• 1950 – Korean War: beginning of the Battle of Taejon.
• 1958 – In the 14 July Revolution in Iraq, the monarchy is overthrown by popular forces led by Abd al-Karim Qasim, who becomes the nation’s new leader.
• Bastille Day (France and dependencies).

People (Births)

• 1608 – George Goring, Lord Goring, English general (d. 1657).
• 1675 – Claude Alexandre de Bonneval, French general (d. 1747).
• 1755 – Michel de Beaupuy, French general (d. 1796).
• 1889 – Ante Pavelic, Croatian fascist dictator during World War II (d. 1959).
• 1896 – Buenaventura Durruti, Spanish soldier and anarchist (d. 1936).
• 1897 – Plaek Phibunsongkhram, Thai military officer and politician, 3rd Prime Minister of Thailand (d. 1964).
• 1913 – Gerald Ford, American commander, lawyer, and politician, 38th President of the United States (d. 2006).
• 1922 – Robin Olds, American general and pilot (d. 2007).
• 1922 – Elfriede Rinkel, German SS officer (d. 2018).
• 1930 – Benoît Sinzogan, Beninese military officer and politician (d. 2021).
• 1936 – Robert F. Overmyer, American colonel, pilot, and astronaut (d. 1996).
• 1947 – Claudia J. Kennedy, American general.
• 1988 – Jérémy Stravius, French swimmer; winner of five gold medals in Olympic and world championship competitions.

People (Deaths)

• 809 – Otomo no Otomaro, Japanese general and Shogun (b. 731).
• 1262 – Richard de Clare, 6th Earl of Gloucester, English soldier (b. 1222).
• 1774 – James O’Hara, 2nd Baron Tyrawley, Irish field marshal (b. 1682).
• 1790 – Ernst Gideon von Laudon, Austrian field marshal (b. 1717).
• 1816 – Francisco de Miranda, Venezuelan general (b. 1750).
• 1876 – John Buckley, English soldier, Victoria Cross recipient (b. 1813).
• 1917 – Octave Lapize, French cyclist (b. 1887).
• 1918 – Quentin Roosevelt, American lieutenant and pilot (b. 1897).
• 1965 – Adlai Stevenson II, American soldier and politician, 5th United States Ambassador to the United Nations (b. 1900).
• 1974 – Carl Spaatz, American World War II general; commander of the Strategic Air Forces in Europe (b. 1891).